Meaning of "possible signal in upper chord".

[poosygirl]

I am wondering if anyone can help interpret a recent brain MRI done to rule out demylinating disease. I have been dx with a Chiari 1 Malformation but the findings also say there is a possible signal within the upper cord. A cervical MRI says I have moderate to severe right and moderate left foraminal stenosis at C5-C6. Are the two conditions related and what does a possible signal mean? Good or bad? I am worried that it might be a sign of MS as I do have symptoms, but they could be from the Chiari. Thanks!

[suspiciouscombo]

Just a thought. If you have a few minutes, I would highly suggest you navigate aspentoo's blog. It's outstanding and well structured with a plethora of information and her personal journey we can all relate ..... Look under her profile page and you will quickly locate her blog link info. Best to you.....

[poosygirl]

Thank you for the suggestion, I will go there right now suspiciouscombo.

[aspen2]

You are very welcome, and yes, time seems to run at different speeds in neurology-land compared to "real life" ;).

[suspiciouscombo]

Thumbs up to you aspentoo!!! Ox

[aspen2]

First, please know that we are not doctors here.  Most of us have ms.  Some of us did a pile of reading on our way to a diagnosis of ms  :).

A possible signal could be as little as an artifact of the imaging.  Given your history of stenosis and chiari, BOTH which cause symptoms that mimic ms, my guess is that you are not looking at a third complication.

I found an article that talked about signal changes in the spinal cord of people with severe stenosis, so it seems that cord signal change could be explained by your preexisting condition.  

THEN I found your whole mri report listed in the chiari community where under "impressions" it says 'No significant cervical spine cord signal".  I would think that is good news, for sure, as far as ruling out something new like ms, or even permanent damage due to stenosis.

Hang in there.  Make a list of questions for your neurologist -- he or she will be the only one that can make sense out of your mri.  Hopefully you don't have to wait too long for your appointment.

[poosygirl]

Thank you so much for your time aspentoo! Appreciate your helpful opinion. I am supposed to see a neurosurgeon for the Chiari but it is taking a long time for the appointment to get set up. I will definitely have a LOT of questions.